Rotorua gets new Hop On Hop Off Bus

By Steve Collins, on October 4th, 2018

The New Zealand city of Rotorua is an area of much geothermal activity and a city that is steeped in Maori traditions. One of New Zealand’s most popular tourist destinations, Rotorua has geysers, bubbling mud pools and therapeutic mineral springs and pools that are all easily accessible.

The GreatSights’ Rotorua CitySights Bus has been launched at a ceremony at Te Puia. Rotorua’s latest tourism experience is a hop-on, hop-off bus service which links a range of the city’s top attractions on a 95minute round trip.

Rotorua CitySights experience is owned by InterCity Group which currently carries more than 125,000 passengers to and from the city each year. It is estimated that the new CitySights service will boost these passenger numbers by at least 10 per cent.

The bus stops at 13 locations throughout Rotorua, including Agrodome, Skyline, Rainbow Springs, Zorb, Whakarewarewa Village, Te Puia Polynesian Spa and the Rotorua Museum. Passengers can either take the 95minute round trip or hop on and off at their choice of stops.

Tickets are valid for 48hours, enabling customers to board and exit the bus as many times as they like over that hour period.

As part of the service, the driver will deliver an informative and entertaining commentary bringing to life the culture, history and lifestyle of Rotorua. Passengers who speak Japanese, Mandarin or Spanish will also have the option of access to disposable earphones (free of charge) so they can listen to recorded commentary on the bus.

The service will depart every two hours from 8.30am at the Rotorua i-SITE Visitor Centre with the last service departing at 2.30pm. Ticket prices are $30 for adults and children are free.
The modern Rotorua CitySights bus is equipped with the latest kneeling suspension technology and the “super low floor” design enables a very smooth entry from the kerbside into the bus for people with limited mobility. A retractable ramp can be lowered to the kerb with the assistance of the driver, allowing wheelchairs easy access and off the bus.

The operator of the Rotorua CitySights bus InterCity Coachlines provides New Zealand’s largest coach transportation network connecting to more than 600 destinations nationwide, with over 200 services every day.